Butterfly valve

ABSTRACT

A butterfly valve having a two piece body, an annular seat carried in the body and a disk mounted in the body for rotation within the seat. An indicator plate mounted at one end of the body and a valve actuator attached to the disk shaft and overlying the plate with a detent arrangement for indicating valve position. Outlet nozzles carried on the disk with a flow path from the exterior of the valve to the nozzles for introducing fluid flow into the pipeline, with check valves in the valve body and in the nozzles. A special disk configuration for reducing damage to the disk edge.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to butterfly valves designed for clamping betweenflanges in a pipeline, typically in an oil field, and is an improvementon the butterfly valve shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,498,584. Experience inthe field with construction and operation of the prior valve has givenrise to a need for improvement in design and operation, and it is anobject of the present invention to provide such a new and improvedbutterfly valve.

Some of the problems are excessive wear of the valve disk, alignmentproblems of valve parts when the valve is disassembled for replacing avalve seat, operator error in opening, closing and setting the valve,accomodation of both manual and remote control devices, and clogging ofthe fluid injection system.

Other objects, advantages, features and results will more fully appearin the course of the following description.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A butterfly valve having a body with an annular seat carried in the bodyand a disk mounted in the body for rotation within said seat, with avalve actuator attached to the disk shaft and overlying an indicatorplate mounted on the body. The indicator plate carries a plurality ofdetent openings arranged in an arc, and the actuator has a spring loadeddetent member for engaging the detent openings as the actuator rotatesthe shaft and disk. In the preferred embodiment, the indicator plate iscircular with the detent openings in the rim of the plate and with theactuator having a shoulder overlying the rim and carrying the detentmember, with this shoulder aligned with the disk to provide a visualindication of valve condition at all times. Preferably the indicatorplate is attached to the valve body by screws, with the screwspositioned in predetermined positions to serve as stops for actuatorrotation.

The valve also includes a hollow shaft in communication with one or morenozzles carried on the disk, with the shaft providing for fluid flowfrom the exterior through the nozzles and into the pipeline, with acheck valve carried in the hollow shaft and a check valve carried ineach nozzle.

The valve body is formed of two semi-circular halves which are takenapart for removal and replacement of valve seats, with the alignment ofthe body halves controlled by alignment pins positioned through theflanges of the body halves.

A special shape of disk is provided for protecting the disk edge fromwear by the fluid flow through the valve. The disk has a central sectionalong the pivot axis with wings projecting in opposite directions, witheach of the wings having a thicker inner section and a thinner outersection with the outer section beigg crescent shaped, and preferablywith the periphery of the disk having a rounded edge engaging the valveseat.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an end view of a butterfly valve in the closed position andincorporating the presently preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view taken along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top view taken along the line 3--3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4--4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5--5 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to that of FIG. 5 showing the valve in the openposition; and

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line 7--7 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The valve of the invention as shown in the drawing figures includes abody 11 formed of semi-circular half sections 12, 13, with an annularseat 14 clamped within the body sections, and a circular disk 15 mountedin the body for rotation within the seat. Each of the body sections 12,13 has an upper flange 16 and a lower flange 17, with the body sectionsbeing joined together at the flanges by screws 18. A grease fitting 19may be mounted in one of the flanges if desired for lubrication of theshaft.

The annular seat 14 typically is a molded elastomer or the like, and maybe the same as that shown in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3,498,584.The seat is replaceable by removing the screws 18 to separate the twobody half sections. The old seat is discarded and a new seat is clampedbetween the two half sections. In order to maintain precise alignmentbetween the two half sections during the seat replacement operation,alignment pins 21 are positioned in the two half sections, with two pinsbeing used in each end of the half sections in the embodimentillustrated. During initial assembly, with the two half sections exactlyaligned as desired, holes are drilled through the mating flanges forreceiving the pins. Then the pins always provide for the desiredalignment of the two half sections, regardless of any play in theopenings for the screws 18.

In the prior art design the body sections 12, 13 were held together bybands or rings positioned around the upper flanges 16 and around thelower flanges 17. In order to change a seat or a disk, the bands had tobe removed and replaced, usually requiring special tools. Also the bandstended to loosen and break. The present design with the screws 18 andpins 21 eliminates the bands, and the device can be disassembled andreassembled using an Allen wrench for the screws.

The disk 15 preferably has a tubular central section 22 with an uppershaft 23 and a lower shaft 24 positioned therein. As shown in FIG. 4,lower shaft 24 is tubular, is closed at its upper end 25, and has athreaded opening 26 at its lower end for connection of a line orfitting. The lower shaft 24 is fixed to the disk 15 by a transverse tube27, with nozzles 28 threaded onto the projecting ends of the transversetube 27. A check valve 31, typically a conventional spring and ballcheck valve, is carried in the lower shaft 24 adjacent the threadedopening 26. Similar check valves 32 are mounted in the transverse tube27 adjacent each of the nozzles 28. The inlet opening 26, the tubularlower shaft 24, the transverse tube 27, and the nozzles 28 provide aflow path from the exterior of the valve to the pipeline in which thebutterfly valve is installed. The nozzles may be utilized for cleaningor flushing the valve components and/or for introducing an additionalfluid into the fluid flowing through the pipeline. The check valvesserve to prevent backflow through the lower shaft and to preventclogging of the nozzles and/or shaft by solids in the pipeline flow. Theshafts can be joined to the disk by transverse pins or as press fits orotherwise as desired.

An indicator plate 35 is attached to the flanges 16 of the body halfsections 12, 13 by two screws 36 and two screws 37. In the embodimentillustrated, the heads of the screws 36 project above the top surface ofthe plate 35, while the heads of the screws 37 are in counter-bores inthe plate so that the heads are flush with or below the top surface ofthe plate. With this arrangement, the projecting screws 36 serve aslimit stops for the rotation of the disk.

A valve actuator 38 is attached to the upper shaft 23 by a pin 39 andhas a handle 40 threadedly mounted thereon. The indicator plate 35preferably is circular in shape, and the valve actuator 38 includes ashoulder 41 which overhangs the edge of the indicator plate. A mechanismis provided for indicating to the operator who is rotating the disk bymeans of the handle, the position of the disk within the valve. In theembodiment illustrated, this is a detent mechanism with detent openings42 arranged in an arc around the edge of the indicator plate, and adetent ball 43 and spring 44 carried in the shoulder 41 of the actuator.The handle 40 and the shoulder 41 are aligned with the disk 15,providing the operator with a visual indication of the disk position atall times. Also, the detent mechanism permits the operator to set thedisk at predetermined positions between fully closed and fully opened.If desired, a groove 45 may also be provided in the upper surface of theactuator 38 to provide an indication of the position of the disk. A stopbar 46 is formed integral with the shoulder 41 on the actuator 38, withthe stop bar engaging the high screws 36 at the two extreme positions ofthe disk, to provide a stop for the fully closed position and the fullyopened position, as best seen in FIG. 7.

In an alternative arrangement, a shaft rotation device such as anelectrical or pneumatic or hydraulic power unit can be mounted on theplate 35 or directly on the upper flanges 16 and attached to the shaft23 for remote actuation of the valve.

The disk 15 has a special shape which reduces wear on the disk edge dueto abrasive materials flowing through the pipeline. The unique diskconfiguration functions to deflect fluids away from the sealing edge ofthe disk and hence extends the operating life of the valve. Referring toFIG. 1, the disk has a central section 50 with opposed wings, with eachwing having a thicker inner section 51 and a thinner outer section 52,with the outer section having a crescent shape. Also, the edge 53 of thedisk is rounded, as best seen in FIG. 5. The central section 50 ispreferably tubular for receiving the upper and lower shafts 23, 24.

The butterfly valve of the present invention is used in the same manneras are prior art butterfly valves. Typically the valve is clampedbetween flanges of pipes of a pipeline and is used for controlling fluidflow through the pipeline. When clamped between the flanges, the seat ofthe valve provides sealing engagement with the flanges, with theclamping pressure compressing the seat to provide sealing engagementbetween the seat and the disk when the valve is in the closed position.

I claim:
 1. In a butterfly valve having a body, an annular seat carriedin said body, and a disk mounted in said body for rotation within saidseat, the improvement comprising in combination:an indicator platemounted at one end of said body; said disk having a first shaftprojecting through said body and plate; and a valve actuator attached tosaid first shaft and overlying said plate; said plate having a pluralityof detent openings arranged in an arc, said actuator having a springloaded detent member for engaging said detent openings as said actuatorrotates with said shaft and disk; said body comprising two semi-circularhalf sections with flanges at each end of each half section with screwmeans for clamping said half sections together at said flanges, and atleast one pin in each clamped pair of flanges parallel with and spacedfrom said screw means for maintaining said half sections in desiredalignment during successive unclamping and clamping operations for valveseat replacement regardless of any play in the opening for the screwmeans.
 2. A butterfly valve as defined in claim 1 wherein said actuatorincludes a stop bar positioned at said plate, and said plate is attachedto said body by a plurality of screws, with two of said screwsprojecting above said plate at predetermined locations for engaging saidstop bar and limiting rotation of said actuator and disk.
 3. A butterflyvalve as defined in claim 2 wherein said indicator plate is circularwith said detent openings in the rim of said plate, and said actuatorincludes a shoulder overlying said rim, with said shoulder aligned withsaid disk and carrying said detent member.
 4. A butterfly valve asdefined in claim 3 including a second shaft on said disk opposite saidfirst shaft and extending through said body, said second shaft having afluid flow path therethrough with said flow path closed at the inner endand open at the outer end,at least one nozzle carried on said disk, withsaid nozzle coupled to said second shaft flow path, and a first checkvalve positioned in said second shaft adjacent said outer end for flowthrough said second shaft to said nozzle.
 5. A butterfly valve asdefined in claim 4 including a second check valve positioned in saidnozzle for flow out through said nozzle.
 6. A butterfly valve as definedin any one of claims 1-5 wherein said disk has a pivot axis with atubular central section along said axis and wings projecting in oppositedirections from said central section, with a rounded edge at theperiphery of said disk and with each of said wings having a thickerinner section and a thinner outer section with said outer section beingcrescent shaped.
 7. A butterfly valve as defined in claim 6 wherein saidcentral section of said disk is of lesser width at its midpoint and ofgreater width at each end thereof.
 8. In a butterfly valve having abody, an annular seat carried in said body, and a disk mounted in saidbody for rotation within said seat, the improvement wherein said bodycomprises two semi-circular half sections with flanges at each end ofeach half section, with screw means for clamping said half sectionstogether at said flanges, andin least one pin at each clamped pair offlanges parallel with and spaced from said screw means for maintainingsaid half sections in desired alignment during successive unclamping andclamping operations for valve seat replacement regardless of any play inthe opening for the screw means.
 9. A butterfly valve as defined inclaim 8 including a plate mounted at one end of said body on saidflanges with said disk having a first shaft projecting through said bodyflanges and plate.
 10. A butterfly valve as defined in claim 9 includinga second shaft on said disk opposite said first shaft and extendingthrough said body flanges, said second shaft having a fluid flow paththerethrough with said flow path closed at the inner end and open at theouter end,at least one nozzle carried on said disk, with said nozzlecoupled to said second shaft flow path, and a first check valvepositioned in said second shaft adjacent said outer end for flow throughsaid second shaft to said nozzle.
 11. A butterfly valve as defined inclaim 10 including a second check valve positioned in said nozzle forflow out through said nozzle.
 12. A butterfly valve as defined in claim9 wherein said disk has a pivot axis with a tubular central sectionalong said axis and wings projecting in opposite directions from saidcentral section, with a rounded edge at the periphery of said disk andwith each of said wings having a thicker inner section and a thinnerouter section with said outer section being crescent shaped.
 13. Abutterfly valve as defined in claim 12 wherein said central section ofsaid disk is of lesser width at its midpoint and of greater width ateach end thereof.